I apologize but I searched all over and could not for the life of me find an answer…
I’m going to put together a new ps3 stick and instead of hacking, I was going to try a cthulu board (bought assembled). What is the correct wire gauge to buy for use on the ground and buttons?
Also, do the cthulu kits usually come with the usb wire/connection to run out to the console?
Thanks in advance.
I’d use 22-24 gauge. Preferably 24, I use 20 or 22 for the ground to ensure it’s good connection.
I believe you have to buy the usb wire yourself.
Ya, I figured it out, thank you though 
Anything between 18-26 gauge should work fine I believe (18 might be a bit big). Ethernet cables seem to be the most convenient source for wires, since the wires are all 24 gauge and are all differently coloured.
I find 24 guage solid core wires are good for wires going to buttons and feeding through expandable nylon sleeving. They are more rigid. I will always avoid using solid core to solder directly to PCBs, they tend to rip off the contacts. For daisy chaining grounds I like using 26 gauge black wire because when you daisy chain you need to fit two wires into a quick disconnect terminal.
I will always go to stranded core wires for any direct soldering to PCBs. I myself like 24 gauge wire.
I like going with stranded 22 gauge wires simply because it’s easy to work with and it’s the smallest wire size that my wire stripper supports. However, I also have 22 gauge wires ready for smaller contacts.
22-24 gauge stranded is recommended, but the Cthulhu screw terminals will work with about anything. What you should focus on is what gauge wire your QD’s are made for. For example, the QD’s LizardLick sells are rated for 18-22 gauge, so 22 gauge stranded wire would be your best choice; its also a popular choice as its the thinnest wire you can still get at Radio Shack (outside of 30 gauge)
Best choice of stranded wire = thinnest gauge your QD’s support < 26
(remember: higher the gauge number, the thinner the wire)
22 is my fave. Threaded because I dislike qds and just wrap wire around button bottoms.
So 30 gauge should work with the screw-in terminals? I’ve got a pre-assembled cthulhu and I was wondering if I used 30 gauge wire (wiring this my SE stick) would it be okay? Desoldering the screw-in terminals will be a bitch. Other thing I can think of if 30 gauge is too small is to just solder them to the bottom of the cthulhu (where the screw-in terminals are soldered.
30 is way too fragile. 24 is a safe bet.
30 gauge won’t work in the screw terminals. IIRC, the screw terminals on the assembled boards are rated from 24-16 gauge (some of them are 26-18 IIRC) If you’re going that small, you might as well solder them to the unlabelled points anyways.
very nice. When you mean unlabeled points you are talking about A-H/1-9 right? BTW the reason I’m using 30 gauge is because the SE stick PCB is very small and tight so it would be difficult to solder a 24 gauge wire to such a small point.
couldnt you just solder to the terminal block madcatz has on the bottom left? (assuming you’re keeping it in there)
if you’re not gonna daisychain it and dont care about neatness, there’s a choice for ya. i would personally stay away from something so thin as 30g, 20-24g for me